An article recently highlighted young career couples and their decisions on having children. In many cases, if they decided to take the parenthood leap, they opted for one child only.

Taking time to raise a child may cut into a career. It may mean less money in retirement. It may mean less influence and less time to succeed.

Yet only a few people influence for generations: a few political and/or military leaders, certainly a few religious leaders, a few creative geniuses. Most of us will die and be forgotten in a short while, including our career accomplishments.

We should pick our influences carefully. Careers influence. So do children.

Parenthood should be a choice. All choices bring risks, and parents can be deeply disappointed in how a son or daughter turns out. Sometimes children die, leaving behind a different kind of heartache.

Still, even a baby can soften the views of those around them, can be an object of love that leads a parent and others toward better choices, to think long term. And children who live and become successful adults influence beyond the lives of their parents and usually their parents’ careers as well.